Zhongli Di looked at the old man on his right:
"Go quickly and check if the soul is damaged."
"Okay." Zhongli Ren nodded in agreement and hurriedly walked towards the depths of the hall.
A moment later, Zhongli Ren returned, this time with a hint of anger in his voice:
"The souls... are all gone."
"What?!" The other two people's expressions changed simultaneously.
"These storage rooms were supposed to hold hundreds of fresh souls, but now... they've all been emptied." Zhongli Ren's voice was icy. "Not even a trace of a remnant soul remained."
Zhongli Di's face was terribly gloomy. He slammed his cane heavily onto the ground, and a wave of cold Soul Power instantly spread out. The blood in the entire hall began to boil and churn.
He growled, "Who dares to touch the Holy Spirit Cult's possessions and steal so many of our souls? They must pay the price!"
Zhongli Ren's face was grim. "This is bad. This stronghold is also part of our territory. Losing so many souls, if the higher-ups hold us accountable, we'll probably be punished."
"Don't panic. Since they are also Soul Master who rely on absorbing souls to increase their strength, then this matter will be easier to investigate," Zhongli Tian.
"We only need to investigate whose cultivation level has recently increased, and we'll know who did it."
"Let's keep this a secret for now, cover up our failure, and then gather as many souls as possible as quickly as possible to make up for it."
"Good idea."
Zhongli Tian narrowed his eyes. "Look, there's a letter on the ground."
The other two were stunned.
The situation on the ground was so complicated that they completely forgot about the issue of the letter.
Zhongli Ren bent down, picked it up, and began to look at it:
"It's Xu Tianran's mark."
"Could it be that Xu Tianran did it?!" Zhongli Di roared angrily.
"Use your brains and think this through," Zhongli Tian sneered. " Xu Tianran isn't even the Crown Prince anymore, how could he possibly target his powerful supporter?"
"Without us, how could Xu Tianran possibly succeed?"
"That's true."
The three talked for an unknown period of time.
Ten minutes after the three figures disappeared from the scene.
After hearing their entire plan and strategy, Toji appeared from the shadows.
"We need to get back quickly and submit the mission to the Aodu Chamber of Commerce. It's very unsafe here."
The night was as dark as ink, and a cold wind swirled up the fallen leaves on the street, making a rustling sound.
Toji's figure appeared silently in front of the blacksmith's shop. The dilapidated signboard swayed slightly in the wind, making a creaking sound.
He raised his hand and pushed the door open; the wooden door creaked dully.
The shop was still dimly lit, with only a few oil lamps flickering weakly, illuminating a few familiar faces—the members of the Aodu Chamber of Commerce who had handed over the mission last time.
They were talking in hushed tones when they heard the door open. They immediately looked up alertly, their eyes all falling on Toji.
"You finished so quickly?"
Toji saying a word, he took a sealed black bag from his Storage Soul Tool and casually tossed it onto the table.
"Let's inspect it."
The group exchanged glances, and one of them carefully untied the rope at the top of the bag.
"Vomit--!"
As soon as the bag was opened, a strong stench of decay instantly filled the room, and the faces of the people turned deathly pale. One of them even couldn't help but gag.
Inside the bag was a human head.
--He died with his eyes wide open, his face contorted, as if he had experienced extreme pain before his death.
Soon, one of them, suppressing his nausea, carefully examined the object and said in a trembling voice:
"It's... it's him! Mo Yan, the Level 7 Soul Engineer of the Xishui Alliance, he's really dead."
Upon hearing this, the others' expressions turned even more grim, their eyes filled with fear and apprehension as they looked at Toji.
That's Level 7 Soul Engineer, Soul Saint level expert!
It's only been a week since I accepted the task.
"Is the identity verification complete?"
"Oh, oh, confirmed." The man nodded repeatedly. "Please wait a moment, esteemed guest, while we consult with our superiors."
Toji nodded without reacting, watching them get busy. After taking the bag and walking out the door, he said to one of them:
"Is there anything to eat? I'm starving, trying to finish this mission."
The man froze for half a second, then quickly broke into a smile:
"Yes, we have distinguished guests. Please wait a moment while I prepare it for you."
Clearly, after this incident, they all value Toji highly.
The fact that they could kill a Level 7 Soul Engineer so easily meant they were someone they absolutely couldn't afford to offend, a stark contrast to their previous attitude.
Soon, a sumptuous dinner was served to Toji.
Toji glanced around and found the food to be decent, so he started wolfing it down.
The hunger after the battle made him disregard etiquette; as juices dripped from the corners of his mouth, he simply wiped them away and continued to feast.
"This amount isn't enough for me, please bring more."
"Um... okay."
Toji couldn't keep up with the speed at which the food was served. Soon, to the astonishment of others, Toji's plate was piled higher than everyone else's.
"Honorable guest..." The others looked at Toji with expressions that suggested they were about to cry, "Do you still want to eat? If we eat any more, we really..."
Before he could finish speaking, the wooden door was pushed open again, interrupting him.
The newcomer was overjoyed and was about to say something when he saw Toji's "results" and was dumbfounded.
"This... you ate all of this?"
"What's the rush? I'll just give you the money." Toji took out a tissue to wipe his mouth, having only eaten about half full, and was somewhat unsatisfied.
"I've waited long enough, haven't I?"
"Mission accomplished. Here is your reward." One of them quickly took out an exquisite Storage Soul Tool from his pocket and respectfully handed it to Toji with both hands.
Toji took it without confirming whether it was a genuine Level 7 Soul Tool.
"Won't you take a look? This is the Level 7 Soul Tool you wanted," the man said quickly.
"I believe you. Even if you don't keep your promise, I'll just kill you all."
Toji casually uttered words that terrified others.
"Distinguished guest, there's another invitation inside," one of them said, mustering his courage. "An auction is about to begin, and there might be something you'd like to see. With this invitation, you'll get a 30% discount on everything."
"I appreciate your kind offer, I'll be there. It'll be a pleasure working with you," Toji said casually, turning to leave.
"Wait!" the man suddenly called out to him.
Toji paused, turned her head, and looked at him with eyes as cold as knives.
The man shuddered at his gaze, but still forced himself to speak:
"Distinguished guest, you are truly capable. Let's get straight to the point. We are from the Aodu Chamber of Commerce... and we have a mission with even higher rewards. Are you... interested?"
Toji's lips curled up slightly, revealing a dangerous smile.
"I'll come back to you for more missions after I've rested for a while."
"Of course, of course." Seeing that Toji was so easy to talk to, the man quickly said, "I wonder if your esteemed guest is interested in our Aodu Chamber of Commerce? We are one of the three major underground forces in Mingdu. Joining us would be of great benefit to you."
"I'm not interested in joining, but cooperation is fine."
Toji turned and pushed open the door, the night wind whipping at the hem of his clothes, his silhouette appearing exceptionally aloof in the dim light.
"They're gone."
As soon as he finished speaking, his figure disappeared into the night, leaving the few people in the blacksmith shop looking at each other in silence for Jiujiu.
"What should we do? He doesn't agree to Aodu Chamber of Commerce."
"What else can we do? The chairman said we must not offend such a talented person easily. Let's just report it truthfully and focus on winning him over."
"Yes."